Treating Mental Health: What are the 7 Types of Bipolar Disorder?

When someone goes through the process of getting a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, it doesn’t end there — the diagnosis will come in the form of a more specific type of the disorder. There are seven types of bipolar disorder; some are considered to be more of a subcategory of a type of bipolar disorder. These unique categories of bipolar disorder can be treated with different types of therapy for bipolar disorder. These are the seven types of bipolar disorder: 

• Bipolar I: This type of bipolar disorder is when someone has had at least one manic episode. This could happen before or after hypomanic (abnormally elevated mood episodes) or major depressive episodes. 
• Bipolar II: The symptoms of this type of bipolar disorder include the person having at least one major depressive episode and a hypomanic episode. The big indicator of this one compared to bipolar I is that they’ve never had a manic episode. 
• Cyclothymia: When diagnosed with this type of bipolar disorder, it means you’ve experienced at least two years of many hypomania periods and depressive symptoms. The symptoms are less severe than when someone has major depression. 
• Rapid Cycling Bipolar: The symptoms that occur present as four or more manic, depressive, or hypomanic episodes over 12 months.
• Bipolar with Mixed Features: This means you can have a depressive episode with mixed components. While the main symptoms are depressive, subclinical manic symptoms are present as well. You can also have a manic episode with mixed components, which is when the main symptom is a manic episode with depressive symptoms also present — just not as the main symptom. 
• Bipolar with Seasonal Pattern: This is also called seasonal affective disorder. It’s triggered by the change of seasons. The symptoms of bipolar show up more prominently during the fall and winter seasons as there’s a lack of sunshine and the temperature outside gets colder. 
• Unspecified Bipolar: When someone doesn’t get diagnosed with a specific type of bipolar disorder, this means they have an elevated or depressed mood but they don’t meet the criteria for the other types of bipolar disorder. 

With the diagnosis of a specific type of bipolar disorder comes the importance of getting treatment right away. This treatment often includes medication and different therapies, though the type of therapy for the disorder will depend on each person going through treatment and the approach that works best for them.

What Chemical Imbalance Causes Bipolar I?

People who are diagnosed with bipolar I disorder have an imbalance in their brains of the chemicals norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. Norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter and a hormone responsible for helping transmit nerve signals to different cells. As a neurotransmitter, norepinephrine is made from dopamine. When someone lacks dopamine, it can make them have symptoms of bipolar I disorder. As for the lack of enough serotonin, this is because one of the functions of serotonin is regulating your mood, which is why it’s considered the “feel good” chemical. Low serotonin levels can also account for other types of mental health disorders.

Seeking treatment with therapy can also be used along with medications to help with the chemical imbalance. There are different types of therapies and treatments for bipolar disorder, and it might take some attempts at different treatment options before patients find what works best for them.

What Is the Best Antidepressant for Bipolar II? 

The main treatment plan for bipolar II disorder sometimes includes being prescribed an SSRI antidepressant to help manage depression symptoms. The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) that can be prescribed for bipolar II disorder include citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, and bupropion. If these medications aren’t working, the patient’s doctor might prescribe a different class of drugs known as serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), with options including desvenlafaxine, duloxetine, and venlafaxine.

Although antidepressants can be a useful prescription for someone diagnosed with bipolar II disorder, they can also cause side effects, such as agitation, headaches, nausea, sleepiness, and reduced sex drive. Antidepressants are not the usual type of medication prescribed to people with bipolar II disorder. Instead, physicians usually first prescribe mood stabilizers, such as lithium. Antiseizure medicines can also be used to treat bipolar II disorder because they stabilize nerve membranes. In addition to taking one of these types of medications, someone with bipolar II disorder will often be advised to try different types of therapy as part of the treatment plan. 

Which Therapy is Best for Cyclothymia?

When looking at the types of therapy for bipolar disorder, there is a specific option often used for cyclothymia in addition to medications. Most often, patients will start some type of psychotherapy, especially cognitive-behavioral therapy, which aims to help people identify and change unhelpful or unhealthy thought patterns and beliefs. With psychotherapy, patients will be able to recognize and manage their symptoms of cyclothymia, cope with any stress in their lives, change how they think and solve problems, and improve communication and interactions with other people. 

What Is End-Stage Bipolar Disorder?

End-stage bipolar disorder refers to showing signs of bipolar disorder persistently and more severely. Someone diagnosed with this might spend a longer time in a depressive or manic state with a lack of stability. Some common signs of end-stage bipolar disorder are extreme mood swings, psychosis, suicidal tendencies, social and relationship impact, sleep disturbances, and impaired cognitive ability. These extreme mood swings manifest as people having many manic episodes and depressive episodes.

When someone experiences psychosis symptoms, they begin to get hallucinations and delusions. As the symptoms become more severe, they can impact a person’s mental health, and they might start thinking about suicide. With the unpredictability of the behavior, there’s a social and relationship strain for the person diagnosed with end-stage bipolar disorder. In addition to not having stability, the person can also suffer from sleep disturbances and struggle to sleep through the night. The symptoms of cognitive impairment include issues with concentration, decision-making, and memory. Treatment usually includes one of the many types of therapy for bipolar disorder. 

Get Bipolar Disorder and Addiction Treatment at WhiteSands Treatment

When someone gets diagnosed with bipolar disorder, it might affect them even more emotionally after first hearing the diagnosis. If they take the news especially hard, they might resort to drinking alcohol or using drugs to try to feel better — but that actually makes their symptoms much worse. 

When diagnosed with a mental health issue, patients will also be asked about possible substance use or addiction issues they may be having. Often, addiction and a mental health disorder like bipolar disorder go hand in hand. WhiteSands Treatment can treat people with co-occurring mental health disorders. The staff at WhiteSands Treatment are well-equipped to treat addiction and a co-occurring mental health disorder like bipolar disorder. There are many types of therapy for bipolar disorder and addiction to aid in treatment, along with medications that can truly help. Contact WhiteSands Treatment at 877-640-7820 to learn more about how we can help with treatment for bipolar disorder and addiction. 

External Sources

• Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance —  Rapid Cycling
• Mayo Clinic — Serotonin Syndrome Symptoms and Causes
• Cleveland Clinic — Cyclothymia

If you or a loved one needs help with abuse and/or treatment, please call the WhiteSands Treatment at (877) 855-3470. Our addiction specialists can assess your recovery needs and help you get the addiction treatment that provides the best chance for your long-term recovery.